Electrical cable connectors in general are well known in the art. In the past, electrical contact between cable conducting wires was normally achieved through soldering, crimping or insulation displacement of the cables. More recently, these methods have been replaced by the penetration method which comprises the use of metal conductors in the shape of spikes, or lances to pierce the insulation sheath of the cable conductors to facilitate electrical contact between the wires, thus obviating the need to cut open, or strip the cable insulation sheathing to make the wire contacts. This method is now popularly used in both high voltage and low voltage cable connector assemblies.
Low voltage, as described herein, apply to circuits that are exempt from the protection required for line voltage circuits such as conduits, breaker panels, ground fault interrupt devices etc. Low voltage circuits require a transformer that will modify a 110 v-220 v AC input and provide a 0 v-49 v DC output current. Low voltage circuits are used in the residential and light commercial markets primarily for landscape lighting and irrigation control. Low voltage circuits can be carried on direct burial wires (DBR) which do not require the use of conduit and junction boxes for electrical connections. Typically, the DBR is a flat dual conductor with a pair of individual wires held together by a small link of insulation that can be easily separated without exposing either individual wire.
Low voltage cable connectors are generally used to join, or connect cables that are part of an outdoor lighting system. The system is typically comprised of a set of conductor cables from a source, connecting to a set of conductor cables from the lighting fixture. The source conductor is the electrical current carrying wire pair from a low voltage source (commonly the low voltage transformer) and the fixture conductor is the wire that feeds the fixture and connects to the source conductor.
The common feature of a majority of the low voltage cable connectors is in the use of a metal conductor with a sharp pointed end that penetrates or partly displaces the insulating jackets of a source conductor and a fixture conductor to bring them into electrical contact with each other. The use of such a metal conductor obviates the need to tear open, or strip a major segment of the insulation of both the source conductor and fixture conductor cables in order to bring them into electrical contact with each other.
Many of the popular brands of low voltage connectors available in the market today have significant deficiencies in their construction and operation. For example, in one of the popular brands of the low voltage connectors in the market, the metal conductor spikes used to establish the contact with the wiring within the cables is reported to have a tendency to bend, thereby limiting the connector's capability to effectively pierce the insulated sheathing of the cables to electrically connect the source conductor and the fixture conductor. Many of the most popular low voltage connectors are prone to misalignment of the metal conductor element, which prevents the conductor from making contact with the current-carrying inner metal strands of the target conductor wire. The other limiting feature of some of the low voltage connectors in the prior art are their incapacity to hold and pierce the better quality low voltage cables with a thicker insulating sheathing. A major drawback of the low voltage connectors in the prior art is in their inability to protect the connection from excessive moisture and oxygen which causes corrosion and ultimately failure of the electrical connection. Some of the low voltage connectors used for outdoor lighting and other tasks are also known to be constructed of poor quality plastic that can melt or turn brittle from prolonged exposure to the elements.
The above described deficiencies as well as others in the prior art low voltage cable connectors has prompted the need to construct a better quality cable connector that is sturdy, efficient and capable of withstanding the harsh outdoor elements. It is believed that the present invention of a cable connector with a detachable pivot shaft and pivot hub meets these needs and overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art low voltage cable connectors.